'Godmother’ of Israeli settler movement from Louis Theroux documentary sanctioned by UK

Daniella Weiss pictured with Louis Theroux in the documentary ‘Settlers’ (Picture: BBC 2)

‘What is on my mind all the time is how to bring more people to settle the Palestinian land.’

This is what Daniella Weiss,often referred to as the ‘godmother’ of Israel’s settler movement,proudly told Louis Theroux during his BBC documentary ‘The Settlers’.

The 79-year-old is among several people sanctioned by the UK today over inciting or carrying out violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

Foreign secretary David Lammy said about the measures: ‘The sanctioning of Daniella Weiss and others demonstrates our determination to hold extremist settlers to account as Palestinian communities suffer violence and intimidation at the hands of extremist settlers.

‘The Israeli government has a responsibility to intervene and halt these aggressive actions.

‘Their consistent failure to act is putting Palestinian communities and the two-state solution in peril.’

Who is Daniella Weiss?

Weiss is the founder and leader of Nachala,a radical settler organisation,and a former mayor of Kedumim,an Israeli settlement located in the West Bank. 

For more than 50 years,she has been prominent in the creation of illegal settlements on territory captured by Israel in the Middle East war in 1967.

Nachala’s ambition is for Israel to annex both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Weiss also believes that Lebanon,Jordan and parts of Syria,Saudi Arabia and Iraq are all part of Greater Israel.

The UK government described Weiss as a ‘high-profile extremist settler’ and said she is now subject to an asset freeze,travel ban,and director disqualification.

It added: ‘Weiss has been involved in threatening,perpetrating,promoting and supporting,acts of aggression and violence against Palestinian individuals.’

Nachala,which has been involved in ‘facilitating,inciting,promoting and providing logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts and forced displacement of Palestinians’ is now subject to an asset freeze.

What did Louis Theroux said about Weiss?

In Theroux’s ‘Settlers’,Weiss is shown promoting the expansion of Jewish-only settlements in the West Bank and the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from Gaza.

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli strike in eastern Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on May 19,2025 (Picture: AFP)

She described settlements as a fulfilment of a divine mission and made no apology for the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people.

The activist told the British filmmaker that peace would only come through ‘Jewish control’ of the land.

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Follow us to receive the latest news updates from Metro (Picture: Getty Images)Metro’s on Whatsapp! Join our community for breaking news and juicy stories.When Weiss said that she ‘does not think’ about Palestinian villages in the West Bank such as Beita,Theroux called her stance ‘sociopathic’.

Who else has been sanctioned by the UK?

Weiss’ inclusion on the sanctions list marks a rare move against a leading ideological figure in Israel’s settlement project.Eliav Libi and Zohar Sabah,as well as two illegal settler outposts and two organisations ‘supporting violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank’ have also been targeted.‘These individuals and entities are now subject to measures including financial restrictions,travel bans,and director disqualifications,and will follow 18 other individuals,entities,and companies already sanctioned relating to serious violence against communities in the West Bank,’ the press release read.